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Q: What linksThe Hollies’ Bobby Elliot and Bird to Beast’s Sam and Hannah Hird?A: Bird to Beast‘s new single, Catacombs – and the Lancashire mill-town of Colne…

After a breakthrough start to 2014, Bird To Beast deliver another wonderfully infectious song, Catacombs. And it marks them as songwriters of real note, showcasing an ear for the enticingly odd and attractively dreamy.

Catacombs is not only Bird To Beast’s most lovely and touching single yet, but it also features shuffling percussion from Hollies drummer Bobby Elliott.

The song got its first radio play on Radcliffe and Maconie‘s BBC 6 Music show – with Mark enthusing about the song – and was particularly impressed that Bobby was playing on the track.

Bobby lives in the same Lancashire town of Colne as Sam and Hannah, and after meeting the band – and being wooed by their inventive sound – got involved.

Catacombs is a fabulous single, drawing listeners in with sweetly cooing vocals on love and life, and a coiling, surprising melody, mixing a gorgeous lullaby with rumbustious excitement.

The single is backed with live favourite Posture and Pantomime as a B-side.

Its release follows a whirlwind few months for Bird To Beast, seeing them gaining wonderful UK radio support – including Steve Lamacq, Marc Riley, Chris Hawkins, Radcliffe & Maconie, Alex Lester, Tom Robinson, Michelle Hussey, Ruth Barnes, Sean McGinty, Emma Mac and Shell Zenner’s shows – as well as playing a bunch of well-received gigs, and will be gracing a whole array of festival stages in the coming months.

It’s been a fantastic few weeks for psyche-folk duo Bird To Beast, who have begun to pick up widespread praise and national radio play for their new double-A single, Elephant/Winter Snow.

Elephant has now had multiple spins on BBC 6 Music from early supporter SteveLamacq, as well as Marc Riley, Radcliffe & Maconie and Chris Hawkins – plus additional key tastemaker support from Alex Lester at BBC Radio 2, Ruth Barnes and Shell Zenner at Amazing Radio, Michelle Hussey at BBC Radio Manchester and Sean McGinty at BBC Radio Lancashire.

As well as this whirl of radio play, the band played a unique show last week at Manchester’s wonderful Royal Exchange Theatre – to a crowd who were thrilled by a brilliant show in a wonderful setting.

Londoners can catch them soon, too, when they play a daytime show at Union Chapel on Saturday 15th February, before playing in Manchester again on Thursday 13th March in Gullivers.

There is a brilliant video for Elephant to follow, before the eagerly-awaited physical release of their debut LP, Bird to Beast on the 17th February.